


The Melancholy of Phineas Fur

by Sangvinsk



Series: The Dancing Elephant [3]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Angst, Death, F/M, Humor, Institutionalised racism, Love Triangle, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-04
Updated: 2016-11-13
Packaged: 2018-08-29 01:03:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 16,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8469778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sangvinsk/pseuds/Sangvinsk
Summary: Zootopia was the city were anyone could become anything. It had never occurred to Judy why people seemed so eager to stress that point. When an old crime lord threatens to return to Zootopia, the city is forced to confront a past it would rather forget, and Judy Hopps must face the fact that the city, and those closest to her, hide darker secrets than she suspected.





	1. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to be clear: this story is pretty dark. It's not a romantic comedy and it's pretty darn different from the other two. You will be depressed, angry, and quite possibly confused. At many points they act in ways that could be considered out-of-character for them. If that sounds interesting, read on. If not, assume the series ended in Buckholm Syndrome with Nick and Judy walking paw-in-paw into the sunset.

Blueberries.

Under the covers of a surprisingly large bed, a small, pink nose twitched expectantly at the scent. A leg jerked restlessly in the depths of sleep. A smile spread across the little muzzle without any conscious thought controlling it. She was home.

When Judy awoke, she was in that happy state between waking and slumber in which the world has not yet scared away the dreams. She yawned and stretched herself, small grey arms emitting from a too-large ZPD t-shirt. Sniffing the air with appreciation, she hopped to the door of the bedroom, stepping into the living area. Still half asleep, she leaned against the doorway with a grin.

"Morning beautiful" she said, looking across the living area of Nick's surprisingly cozy, if cramped apartment. The fox in question turned with a smile, dexterously flipping a pancake in the air without looking.

"Morning, fluff" he said with a wink. "Care to set the table?"

"Nope" she said, with an impish grin, letting her eyes roam up and down his half clad form. Shirtless was definitely a good look for him. She made a mental note to keep stealing his shirts for sleepwear. "I'm fine right here."

"No fair fluff, I'm cooking!" He protested.

"Eyes on pancakes, mister" she commanded. "We'll be late for work."

He chuckled, still impressed with her work ethics. He shook his head.

"Crazy, crazy bunny...."

\---

Judy Hopps felt she could do no wrong.

She was in a job that she loved, with colleges that respected her. Her sergeant's exam had been a breeze, and the paperwork had been filed. But most importantly, she had a best friend and a boyfriend, and they were conveniently combined in a single sleek, nigh-irresistible fox.

They hadn't gone beyond heavy petting. They hadn't said they loved one another. That was the best part: after a rough and confusing start, their relationship had moved into a strange, fuzzy state seeming to consist entirely of cuddling and kissing. Nothing was said. Nothing needed to be said; for this part of their lives, all they needed was to be together.

It was this feeling of joy that permeated her as the call came through for her to head to Bogo's office. She shared a surreptitious low-five with her fox, both of them certain her promotion had gone through. Buoyed by a seemingly never-ending euphoria, Judy practically skipped towards the chief's office.

"Enter!"

The euphoria ended.

She could sense it the moment she opened the door. The heavy, depressed atmosphere. The darkness of the room, the hunched shoulders of her commander.

"... Chief?"

"Enter, Hopps."

There were no papers on his usually full desk. Instead, a single manilla case file lay before the visitor's chair. The buffalo was staring at it as if it had personally offended him.

"You have a new case, Hopps."

"Oh."

In truth, she was disappointed. But she hadn't come as far as she had by expecting things to be easy. She glanced towards the door.

"Okay, sure, I'll just fetch Nick and-"

"Officer Wilde will be paired with officer Wolfton for the duration of this case."

She blinked. This meeting was getting stranger and stranger. It didn't help that the chief still wasn't looking at her. He kept his gaze focused on the case file.

The silence stretched out to the point of being unbearable.

"Sir, are we in any sort of trouble...?"

At this, the buffalo finally stirred, shaking himself as if he was suddenly waking from a bad dream. Without answering her question, he took off his reading glasses and rubbed his eyes with a hoof.

"What do you know about the Canine Syndicate, officer Hopps?"

She blinked at the sudden change of subject, and tried to think back.

"I... it was a criminal organisation, wasn't it? Before my time, I was in college when it collapsed. Ran most of the Zootopian underground, I think."

Bogo snorted.

"It didn't run the Zootopian underground, Hopps, it ran _Zootopia_. They had their claws in every level of our infrastructure, civil and judiciary. To all intent and purpose, Zootopia was run from their headquarters in the Rainforest district. The canines had, slowly and surely, built a stranglehold on this entire city... And five years ago, the whole thing simply imploded."

Judy looked at him, uncertain. The buffalo sighed, and got to his feet. He stared out the window.

"There's no other word for it" he said softly, as if to himself. "There was no sign of weakness, there was no sign of inner squabble, but one night their headquarter burnt to the ground and that was that. Their powerhold was broken, the higher officers fled the city, their founder and unseen leader, Phineas Fur, dropped off the grid. The only survivor, what appears to be a trafficking victim, was carried out of the flames by a mammal that we believe was a member of the syndicate. Pretty soon the Koala Nostra and the Big Cartel had divided the city between them, and the Canine Syndicate was forgotten...."

Judy looked at him. She'd seen Chief Bogo upset before, of course, but never quite like this. She was used to him being furious, a spewing volcano. This wasn't it.

This was white-hot rage.

"But sir..." She tried. "If the Syndicate is destroyed, why are we-?"

"Because Phineas Fur is back!"

She jumped as his hooves smashed against the windowsill. He was breathing heavily.

"All the informants are unified on this: Phineas Fur is putting the Syndicate back together. That bastard has had five years to recuperate in the shadows, and we still don't even know what species he is... But it's going to be different this time" he said, confidently, as if reassuring himself. "We'll find him, we'll catch him, we'll string him up to the full effect of the law...."

Judy looked at him with her mouth open.

"Sir, I don't understand... Are you asking me to find this mammal?"

The buffalo relaxed a little, and even let out a little chuckle.

"No, Hopps, I am not. The MBI and the top detectives of the ZPD are collaborating on this. No, you are to protect the trafficking victim. Although she isn't talking, even after all these years, she is still our best hope for nailing Phineas. And this is a job for which your employment is... Serendipitous, to say the least."

She wrinkled her brow. He looked over his shoulder with a wry smile.

"Open the folder, officer Hopps."

Curious, she pulled the manilla file towards her, opening it to page one.

The mugshot of a small, grey rabbit doe stared back at her.


	2. Chapter Two

Nick chuckled as the rodent on the screen made yet another dating guffaw. He tossed a popcorn into the air and caught it expertly with his muzzle.

Life was good.

He'd left his existence as a hustler behind him, the unpleasantness with the Nighthowlers was a distant memory, and he was curled up on the couch with his wonderful bunny girlfriend. Work was a breeze: he'd always gotten along splendidly with Wolfton, and the two canines spent their patrols speculating on what the mammals in business suits were guilty off. He missed partnering with Judy, of course, but that simply meant they enjoyed their evenings all the more, cuddling in the couch with a ' _how I met your otte_ r' marathon. He smiled fondly down at her, a smile which faltered as he saw her droopy ears.

He'd _thought_ it had been a little easy, opting out of another ' _claw and order_ ' episode.

He put down the popcorn bowl silently, then bent down to kiss the top of her head, between the ears. She startled and looked up at him.

"What was that for?"

"You looked like you needed it" he said simply.

"Aw, that's sweet."

She raised herself slightly in his lap and kissed him on the muzzle. Then she sank back with a sigh, and he put his hands around her.

"Rough times at work, fluff?"

"Mhm" she murmured, breathing in deeply in his fur. She loved his smell. Her nose wasn't as sensitive as his, but she hadn't realised how much she'd miss it when they weren't partners anymore.

"Something you want to share?"

"Can't" she mumbled, trying to keep the regret from her voice. "Orders."

"Ah yes. Bogo's 'mystery work'."

"Sorry."

She felt his paws rubbing her back gently, through the t-shirt. They were so large and warm, massaging all the stress away. On cue, the claws raked over her fur, and she sighed. That never failed to reduce her to a pool of butter. She sank deeper into his lap, content.

"No worries, fluff" she heard him say, far away and yet so close. "Just let me know if there's anything I can do for you."

"Mmm... well, this is pretty nice."

A chuckle.

"I meant anything else, lil' rabbit."

"It's okay..." She giggled. The massage made her feel slightly silly. "Unless you can tell me where Phineas Fur is, that is..."

The paws froze for just a fraction of a second. She shifted an ear lazily, and the massage continued.

"Hah, I wish" she heard him say.

She sighed again, closing her eyes under his ministrations. Nick simply sat there with a smile, eyes staring fixedly at the TV screen.

But he didn't see anything at all.

\---

Judy hated Phineas Fur.

She didn't hate him for what he had done to Zootopia. There had been crime lords before him, and there were crime lords after him. Heck, she was the godmother to the grandchild of one of them. No, she hated him for what he had done to Jennifer.

Jennifer Kale, the victim in the case file, was a a shy, good-natured rabbit of some thirty years. Her fur was grey, with hints of old age showing up around her ears. She smiled nervously, she spoke in a low voice, but Judy could tell that she was a sweet person. And that broke her heart, because Jennifer lived alone.

In Bunnyburrow, no one lived alone. A typical rabbit couple averaged on three hundred kits, the burrow twisting and expanding as the family grew. No one lived alone. No one slept alone; it was usual for siblings in the same litter to share a single bed until they grew up. There was always someone around, laughing, crying, playing, working, complaining. A burrow was filled with life.

Jennifer's apartment was cripplingly empty.

The Mammal Bureau of Investigation had not treated her unkindly: the nice uptown apartment in which she was secluded was spacious and pleasantly furnished. The taste was a little impersonal, but the few, warm touches of style that peppered the room were more depressing still: a statue of a red fish, a novelty carrot, a bar mat from some place called the Prancing Pachyderm... clearly relics Jennifer had managed to scavenge on the few times it had been deemed safe for her to leave the apartment.

A survivor. But due to the danger against her life, still a prisoner of the defunct Canine Syndicate.

And that made Judy's hackles rise.

The morning of the seventh was the same as any other. She walked into the crisply clean apartment, nodding at Oswald Orkney, the otter cop from the canal district. Bogo hadn't wanted large predators on this assignment. Particularly not foxes, as an answer to her very specific question, as they had constituted the upper echelons of the Syndicate.

She tried not to think about that.

She made sure the door was locked behind her and that the heavy curtains before the window were closed. Tossing her hat on the table, she moved into the kitchen, where the older bunny was fussing over a salad. She jumped when Judy entered, but then smiled in joy. Judy did her best to return it, but felt a stab of pain in her heart. What was it like, she wondered, to have so little in one's life that even a guard was like a cup of ambrosia?

"Oh, Officer Hopps" she said, nervously, twirling her apron with a paw. "I wanted to surprise you with a salad. I mean, maybe you already ate. Of course you already ate. I'm sorry, I-"

"Judy" the policebunny said firmly. "I told you, Judy. And I'd love a little salad."

The doe looked uncertain, but Judy marched towards the counter, picking up a knife and chopping the celery. After some hesitation, Jennifer joined her, nose twitching.

They worked in silence for a little while.

"This is nice" Judy said at last, then mentally slapped herself. That was the kind of thing people said when they had nothing to say. Jennifer didn't notice, but nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah! Yeah, I used to help prepare the meals, with Mother. Back in the- yeah."

The knife flew across the cutting board with a practised hand, and Judy threw her a sideways look.

The doe never talked about her time in the Syndicate. She rarely talked about the past at all, really. Judy didn't know if this was fear of the Syndicate or orders from the MBI, but wasn't pressing. She was on guard duty. For once, she wasn't going to try to solve everything on her own.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Jennifer bustled over to the fridge, taking out a jar of sardines. "For Officer Orkney," she explained, "could you ask him if he wants anything with them?"

"Sure" Judy said, putting down the knife and wiping her hands on a towel. She hopped towards the living room. She had to squint against the sunlight pouring into the room, but she could see the otter on his chair by the door, reading a book. He looked up at her, curiously.

"Oswald, Jennifer wants to know if-"

_The sunlight was pouring into the room._

Judy blinked, and glanced towards the wide, tall windows on the wall. The curtains were open, giving a nice view of the street outside. It was a lovely day.

She turned around to ask Oswald why the curtains weren't closed, but the chair was empty. There was no otter in the room.

Jennifer hummed happily, walking up behind Judy with a bowl filled with salad. There was just the slightest warning as something glittered in the sunlight outside. Judy swung around and jumped on the other rabbit.

"GET DOWN!"

The salad scattered across the room as the two rabbits slid along the floor, into the kitchen. The glass shattered, and Judy managed to wrap one arm around her own ears and one around Jennifer's before the flash grenade went off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be a spot of action in the next chapter... but then again, this fic is rated M, is it not?


	3. Chapter three

_Pain!_

The sensation rang through her skull, splitting it as if an ax had been driven through her temple by an angry elephant. Rabbits had the most sensitive hearing of all the animals in Zootopia, and flash grenades had an impact that would usually floor them. Only Judy's training and the fact that she had managed to press something against her ears had kept her from falling unconscious.

The world swam before her as she got up, rising and falling like a ship in a gale. Jennifer was down for the count, twitching slightly. Judy managed two steps, before falling backwards on her bottom, gracelessly.

The lack of hearing was almost the worst. There was only a long, droned out ringing, as if a fire alarm was going off somewhere. All other sounds were muted or gone, making the next scene seem nearly surreal.

The two wolves smashed through the doorway, throwing the door of its hinges. They stooped gently to get through the low frame, then straightened up and considered the room with a practised air. Calm. Disciplined. Judy made sure to fall backwards with a theatrical 'thump'.

They didn't rush. Quickly and methodically, they secured the living room and the bedroom before entering the kitchen. The first one made a beeline for Judy, who remained silent until his paws were nearly at her throat.

Leveraging her back against the floor, she kicked, applying every ounce of strength those long jogs in Sahara Square had given her. The wolf yelped, surprised, and stumbled backwards against the counter. He was distracted. Distracted and close. Her paw flew to her hip, slipping out her stun gun without conscious thought. The world swam, but at this distance, she couldn't miss.

The wolf twitched as the weapon discharged a paralysing load into his body, and Judy got to her feet. She then immediately fell down again, dropping the weapon, as a pot flew past her head, shattering against the stove.

The remaining wolf eyed her carefully. To Judy's surprised, he wore a ski mask of some sort. Not a hitmammal then. A hitmammal wouldn't want to lose the advertisement.

_Stay steady_ , she thought to herself. _You caught the other one by surprise, but the only reason you aren't dead now is because he doesn't know you're disoriented..._

The two mammals sized one another up, slowly. The wolf began to circle her, and Judy turned with him but didn't move. She had Jennifer behind her. She could use that as an excuse not to reveal her unsteady feet.

The wolf lounged.

Judy was fast. She was very fast, but now she could barely move without throwing up. He caught her around the waist, grasping her with both paws, and began to squeeze. Feeling the breath torn from her, the sight of the sharp teeth approaching almost seemed surreal. She slapped his paws. She threw her arms in the air, casting about for something, anything, and her paws landed on the handle of the top drawer. Desperately, she drew it out, and was rewarded with a slight yelp as the metal handle struck the exposed teeth. She wriggled out of his grip, positioned her feet, and kicked.

They were lying by the counter, and his head struck the wooden surface. She didn't give him time to recuperate, but kicked him again. Fear driving her far more than adrenaline itself, she kicked again, faster and faster, her legs going like jackhammers until she realised he had stopped moving long ago.

She lay on the floor for a moment, panting, the only one of the four mammals in the room that could still move. Then, with a mighty heave, she threw up hugely to her side, spilling blueberry pancakes on the meticulously cleaned floor.

The room no longer spun, and the ringing sound was dying down. Wiping her mouth with a shaking paw, she looked blearily over the scene. There was still sunlight in the living room. That seemed wrong, somehow, that there should still be sunlight...

She heard a deep groan, and realised the first wolf was stirring. Too little voltage? She blinked the tears from her eyes, but couldn't see the stun gun.

_Flee, little rabbit..._

Hearing voices from outside, she grabbed Jennifer by her paw and threw her over her shoulder. Then she took a deep breath and carried her out the door.

\---

Orkney had betrayed them.

It didn't seem like there could be much doubt about the matter. The otter had pulled away the curtains and dodged smartly out before the grenade hit. Was that all he was paid to do? Had he simply not wanted to be part of the fight? It didn't matter. Someone at the ZPD had betrayed them.

How many more were liable to do the same?

Judy couldn't be sure, and that put her in a rather tight spot. She'd dragged Jennifer to safety in a nearby storage building, but she didn't dare call it in. The police radio was an open channel; she couldn't go directly to Bogo, and she simply didn't have any other way to contact him.

More than anything, she wanted to call Nick. Not just because he could help, but because she needed him. She'd faced dangerous situations before, of course. Frequently. But to have someone strangle the life out of her, try to _bite_ her, it was... Unsettling.

But Nick was not an option. Jennifer woke up, and she was in a state. Judy had to press her paw against the older bunny's mouth, and hated herself for it. Based on the heavy breathing and the struggling, she guessed the doe had a panic attack, possibly some form of PTSD. She talked her down as quietly as she could, and the other rabbit eventually settled down, hugging Judy as close as she could. So no, Nick was not an option. He was the sweetest fox in the world but he was still a fox, and therefore the last thing Jennifer needed to see right now.

With no other option available to her, Judy simply waited, waited until nightfall. She kept her ears, now only slightly smarting, trained on the street outside, but though she heard the occasional canine, no one seemed to be looking for them.

When it was dark, she coaxed the shaking rabbit out with her on the street, keeping as much to the shadows as they could until they reached her apartment. She still kept her place at the Pangolin Arms even though she spent most of her time at Nick's place, and it wasn't listed as her address due to a filing error. There were no predators there, and no one except Nick and Clawhauser knew about it.

"It's all right" she said gently to Jennifer, who was biting her lower lip and looking like she was about to cry from fear. "It's my place. It's not as fancy as yours, but I guarantee you... You're safe here."

The doe nodded, and Judy gave her a reassuring smile as she opened the door. Jennifer's eyes widened in sheer horror, and Judy spun around.

On the far side of the tiny apartment there was a little desk and a chair, as well as a box of sundry items she hadn't bother to sort. Bent over the box was a certain dashingly handsome, yet at present highly inconvenient, fox, his tail wagging happily.

"Ah, Carrots!" He called out, without turning around. "You'll be pleased to know I've gotten your microwave to start working again. I know you haven't used it in a while, but I figured you'd get a kick out of us two sharing a Carrots for One, and.... You've got company...."

The last words trailed off, along with his grin, as he turned around to look at the newcomers. Jennifer was breathing heavily again, and Judy turned to her.

"It's all right" she reassured her, quickly. "We can trust him, he's a friend. Police, like me!"

Jennifer's mouth was moving up and down as she struggled to formulate words. Nick wasn't saying anything. Judy squeezed Jennifer's paw.

"I realise you're frightened, but I really need you to-"

" _Nicholas!?_ "

Judy's mouth clamped shut in surprised as Jennifer shouted the name. Stunned, she didn't have the power to keep her hold on the other as the older doe rushed across the room to hug the terrified fox around the waist, pressing her face against his shirt.


	4. Chapter four

Bogo was not a patient mammal.

He was well known for this; an angry tirade and a direct rebuke was, nine times out of ten, the best way to keep the situation under control in a station filled with diverse, powerful species, half of which had tried to eat one another in ages past.

Now, however, was the tenth time. He slowly removed his reading glasses and rubbed his eyes with a hoof.

"Wilde, why am I getting the impression that I'm suddenly in one of those Tanuki harem mangas?"

Nick, sitting in a chair before the large buffalo's desk, briefly considered inquiring as to when his commander had ever read one of those. Realising that only a thin veneer of professionalism was keeping the larger mammal from trampling him into a stain on the carpet, he equipped his most disarming grin instead.

"I can assure you, sir, this is a _simple_ misunderstanding."

Bogo looked less than impressed.

"Oh really?"

There were three mammals before Bogo's desk. Nick sat in the middle, in his own chair. On his left sat Jennifer, holding his left paw and stroking it absent-mindedly, refusing to let go. She had an almost hypnotised expression on her face. On his right side sat Judy, looking very much like a thunderstorm in a well-fitting uniform. She was holding his right paw. Firmly. He wasn't sure what excuse she had planned to give Bogo for why two of his officers were holding hands, but by the feel of it, he would have need of a bone setter by the end of the day. He tried the grin again.

"You see, Jenny and I... Used to go to school together! Waaaay back in the day. Middle school, if I recall correctly. Didn't we go to middle school together, Jenny?"

The rabbit nodded, still stroking his paw. Nick coughed.

"Now, as I understand it, poor Jenny has had a rough day- and years! I had no idea!- so, naturally, she is happy to see a familiar face."

"A familiar face?" Bogo asked, deadpan.

"Yes."

"From middle school?"

"Yes."

"And it's a complete coincidence that you met her on the day she was attacked after five years in hiding?"

Nick rolled his eyes in good-natured disbelief, radiating an air of jovial perplexity.

"What are the odds!"

"Unbelievable ones" Bogo remarked, dryly.

Nick winched.

"Jennifer will confirm my story, I'm sure" he said, not liking how defensive he sounded.

"So am I" Bogo grunted, and turned to Judy. He didn't even raise an eyebrow at the paw holding.

"Have you been scheduled for debriefing, Hopps?"

"Yes sir" she said, scowling up at the fox. Nick very carefully avoided her gaze. Bogo grunted again, and waved a hoof.

"Alright. Hopps, Wilde, dismissed. I'd like a word with Ms. Kale alone, please."

"Thank you sir" Nick said, struggling very hard not to reveal his relief. He struggled even more to get his paws free and jumped out of the chair. "Come along, Carrots!"

"Sure" the rabbits chorused, then froze, looking at one another. Nick closed his eyes and wished he could bite his tongue off, preferably retroactively. This time, the water buffalo _did_ raise an eyebrow.

"I meant, Officer Hopps" he corrected himself carefully. Judy scowled at him again, then jumped out of her chair. Grabbing his paw, she dragged him into the hallway, and Nick found himself wondering if it wasn't safer with Chief Bogo after all.

\---

"Carrots-"

" _Don't call me that!_ "

"Judy, I can expla-"

Judy flung open a door and threw the fox into an interview room. The camera was off, as was the recorder. Catapulted by her throw, he staggered backwards into a chair, and she was up on the table before he could blink. She grabbed him by the shirt.

"Nick, are you-" _Jennifer's ex?_ "-a member of the Canine Syndicate?"

He held up his paws.

"Look, like I told you, I went to school with-"

"Don't LIE to me!"

"Carrots..."

"I am not Carrots" she snapped, stabbing him in the chest with a paw. "I am not Carrots, you are not my boyfriend, this is an interview room and I am interviewing you, _so are you a member of the Canine Syndicate?_ "

"Judy-"

"Did you throw that flash grenade into her apartment this morning?"

"Flash grenade?" He asked sharply. His eyes widened in horror as they were raised to her long, sensitive ears. He reached up to touch them. "Judy, are you-?"

She deflected his paw, bruskly. Had he touched _her_ ears like that? Had he given _her_ a claw massage?

"Answer the question!"

"As I told you, I went to-"

"Nick, please!"

He fell silent. Her paws were still on his shirt, but she wasn't looking at him. She was shaking.

"Please... If any of it ever mattered to you, if _I_ ever mattered to... Please... Please don't lie..."

His face fell, like an origami figure in the water. He felt his years crashing over him like a tidal wave, and he fell back in his chair. She released his shirt, standing on the table.

"Yes" he said at last. "Yes, I was a member of the Canine Syndicate, a long time ago. And yes, before you ask, that was were I met Jennifer."

She had expected the admission to fill her with rage. Instead, it made all the rage disappear. In fact, everything disappeared, leaving her an empty shell.

"She's not afraid off you" she said simply. He avoided her gaze.

"No. No, she is not."

They sat in silence for a little while.

"I know what you're going to ask" he said at last. "But I can't answer any of your questions."

She didn't look at him.

"You will."

"No, I won't."

"You will."

"Ca- Judy, I don't think you quite understand" he said, wearily. "You don't realise how quickly it went, when the Syndicate fell. Mister Big, the Koala Nostra... They wasted no time consolidating the gains. Most of the officers fled once Phineas dropped off the grid. I have stayed alive, and kept those around me alive, for all these years because _everybody_ knows Nicholas Wilde keeps his mouth shut."

Phineas, she noticed. Not the full name. Not 'the Boss' or even mister Fur. Phineas.

"Are you still working for him?" She asked at last. A dirty cop as well?

But he blinked in surprise.

"Am I working for-? Judy, it's over. The Syndicate is history. Phineas Fur isn't around anymore, trust me."

She smirked mirthlessly. It'd be a cold day in Hell before that happened again.

"He's coming back" she said, simply. "The sources agree."

Strangely, this seemed to confuse him even more.

"Believe me, they're wrong."

"Chief doesn't seem to think so."

"Then the Chief is wrong!" He shouted, suddenly angry. She looked up in surprise. It wasn't just anger, it was an expression of... Betrayal?

It quickly fell away.

"Phineas Fur is history" he said at last, calmly. "And you shouldn't worry yourself over history, Judy."

She pressed a paw to her face. She needed to think. She needed to sort it out in her mind, but she didn't have the time. She didn't have the clarity. She felt like another flash grenade had gone off, in her heart this time.

"When I first met you, you hustled me" she said, not looking at him. He was silent.

"I was angry at you" she continued, unphased. "But when I thought about it later, I said to myself: 'hey, it's no biggy! He's not harming anyone, he's just hustling some elephants!' You were just a charming little con. But this... You were a mobster! You kidnapped and imprisoned decent citizens! How many were there? How many like Jennifer? How many mammals that could have been my brothers and sisters you sick little preda-"

"Oh, you're one to talk" he snarled. She looked up at him, fuming, but he met her gaze with equal fervour.

"'Oh, look at me'" he growled, mimicking a high-pitched voice meant to resemble hers. "'People look at me and think I'm cute and fluffy, and it saddens me'. Well, you know what fluff? _There's plenty of worse things people can think about you!_ You're a fucking bunny! Say your dream didn't work out, what then? Back to Bunnyburrow for carrot farming and square dancing? Hay rides and kits?"

He let out a cruel laugh.

"Of course I was a mobster! Have you ever tried getting legitimate work as a fox? Ever been on the receiving end of a fox repellent? Or simply tried to tell the police you weren't making trouble, you just wanted to get service at a restaurant like any other mammal without red fur! How upset were your 'decent citizens' when _that_ happened? And not just foxes, all canines! Ask Grizzolie some time what the ZDP used to _do_ to wolves when their body cams where turned off. Phineas turned that on its head! The Syndicate made the _city_ fear _us_! If you ask me, Zootopia-!"

He clamped his jaw shut, just a fraction of a second too late. She looked at him with an unmoving gaze.

"Zootopia... What, Nick?"

He looked into her eyes, and didn't back down.

"If you ask me, Zootopia got what it deserved under the Syndicate" he said, quietly.

They sat there for a little while, looking at each other. Then Judy sighed, and pulled a paw down her face.

"Here's what's going to happen, Nick: you're going to turn in your badge. You're going to turn in your badge, and you're going to leave Zootopia. You're going to leave me. I don't want to see you again. I don't want to hear about you again. I don't want to remember that you even existed...."

She jumped from the table, not looking at him. Stare at the floor. Stare at the floor, the floor can't hurt you. The floor can't-

"And if I don't?"

The question came as she opened the door. She stood there with it open, not looking at him as she replied.

"Then I'll put the muzzle on you myself."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I make no apologies for this chapter. Judy has had a rough day, and Nick a rough life (in my headcanon). 
> 
> In other news: despite my reassurance of a chapter a day, that may be difficult tomorrow. I'll do my best, but you may have to be patient.


	5. Chapter Five

_No._

_No. She will not be giving you that badge._

Said badge glinted softly in the lamplight as Judy twirled it in her paws, over and over. She was lying on her back in the bed of her apartment. She'd never realised how small it was before. She'd never realised how empty it was. It was raining. Just like it had in the Rainforest district with mister Manchas, when the others arrived and they found the empty platform.

The scene kept playing over and over in her mind: Bogo demanding her badge, crushing her dreams just because she had become a slight annoyance to him. The officers of the ZPD, the ones who should have been her friends, watching it silently. And then a voice. A voice she had been treating nothing but poorly, speaking up for her.

The badge glittered again.

When she'd first met him, he had been trying to buy a Jumbo Pop. He was hustling, sure, but it wasn't like he could have _known_ someone would come and pay it for him. The elephant could simply have sold him an ice cream and that would have been that. But he'd refused the fox on principle. How would that work out if Nick had applied for a job, she wondered? Or tried to rent an apartment? Sure, he could probably press charges for discrimination, but would the police do anything? Bogo had said as much when she tried to use Nick as a witness: the buffalo had flatly said he wouldn't trust a fox. In front of his men. In front of the fox. As if it didn't matter...

Judy stared into the ceiling.

She'd thought Zootopia was a city where anyone could become anything, and then found it unfair when people wouldn't recognise her as a cop. She thought about an entire species -several species- treated like that, and worse, for generations. She thought about the Canine Syndicate. Everyone said it had been horrible.

But could an entire city treat people like dirt and then cry foul when those people turned the tables on them?

Her mind reeled at the implications, and she shook her head. No. No, going down that line of reasoning was dangerous. That was the kind of reasoning that had started this vicious cycle to begin with, she was sure. Canines could be evil, and they could be good. Judge a mammal on its own merits.

_Oh, I'm sorry, I said NO. She will not be giving you that badge._

She kept her gaze on the ceiling, remembering. Remembering what it had felt like when Bogo asked for her badge. It had been wrong. She _knew_ it had been wrong, but it had also been right. They were the police. What they did was right, even when it was wrong, and there was nothing she could do about it. There was nothing anybody could do about it. She remembered what it had felt like when someone had stood up for her. Had been _able_ to stand up for her. It had felt like...

It had felt like an angel.

"Oh, cinnamon" she moaned, pressing her ears to her eyes as despair washed over her. What had she done? What had she _said_? She needed to talk to him, she needed to...

The sound of her phone rang through the apartment, and her eyes flew up. That was Nick. It had to be Nick! She threw herself around on her bed, grabbing the phone eagerly. Her face fell when she saw the callers.

She steeled it into a smile anyway, and answered the phone.

"Hey, it's my parents!" She said, with forced cheerfulness.

"Hey there, Jude the Dude!"

Her father's dorky greeting usually cheered her up. Now, however, she kept the grin in place. Her mother smiled at her.

"How are things in the big city, hun?"

"Oh, just peachy!"

Her mother's smile wavered a little, and she shared a look with her husband.

"Judy, honey," she said kindly, "we can see your ears."

Judy slapped a paw over them, frustrated. Darn expressive things! Why'd they have to be so droopy, anyway?

"Is it something to do with work?"

"Yeah, do I need to have a word with that buffalo?"

Judy sighed.

"No, dad, work is great." _Great-ish_.

"Well then, what?"

She bit her lip and looked away from the screen for a moment, contemplating what she should say. But right now she was very confused, and she was seriously low on people to talk to.

"Well, it's about this..." _Case. Neighbour. Book_. "Pigeon."

There was a pause. Judy mentally slapped herself.

"A pigeon?" Her father asked.

"Yes. He's a pigeon. A red pigeon" she added, after a moment's hesitation.

For a moment they both looked puzzled. Then the muzzle of Bonnie Hopps went through a series of expression as the various implications sank in.

"Oh. Oh! ...Oh."

Judy closed her eyes, leaning into the pillow. Well, it had been that kind of day. Might as well be disinherited while she was at it.

"That's... Nice, dear."

Her eyes flew open. She stared at the little screen in shock and budding happiness. Stu looked from his wife to his daughter with a confused expression.

"You're not mad?"

"Oh, no dear! We always knew you were... Independently minded. So if you like r-red pigeons, who are we to fault you? As long as you're happy." Pause. "Except you don't look all that happy, dear."

Judy squeezed back tears. For months she had had a seething pain in her stomach about what her parents would say if they found out about her and Nick, and now that she knew that they- well, her mother- was okay with it, it was too late...

She cleared her throat.

"We had a fight."

"You had a fight with a pigeon?"

"You shush, Stu Hopps. What was the fight about, dear?"

"It's-" _about his membership in a nightmarish criminal syndicate which I've recently concluded is morally ambiguous in light of institutionalised speciesism_ "- complicated."

Oddly, her mother seemed to relax at this.

"Oh, sweetie, everybody fights with their... Pigeon. It's normal!"

She felt a lump in her throat.

"I said some horrible things to him" she said in a small voice. "He hates me now!"

"The pigeon?"

"Shush, Stu. Sweetie, he could _never_ hate you."

"You don't know that!"

There was silence at this, and her mother sighed.

"No, dear, I suppose I don't. But I know this: you're a trier, Judy. You're not one of those gals that lie on their bed weeping when they've had a fight with their pigeon. If you want him back, you'll try. You'll march right back in that park with a bag of breadcrumbs, and you'll feed that pigeon! And if he likes you too, well, then he'll come over eventually. You'll see."

Judy smiled, her heart a little lighter.

"Thanks mom."

"But just the breadcrumbs, you hear?" Bonnie said sharply. "Not the whole bread. No bird is going to buy the bakery if they get the bread for free."

"Why would a pigeon- ow!"

Judy chuckled.

"Don't worry, mom. You've told me."

Jennifer probably let him have the bread, a cruel voice whispered in the back of her head. Heck, she'd probably let him have the whole bakery, pastry counter and all. In fact, she wouldn't be surprised if the doe was eating an eclair right now. A long, red, cream-filled...

She blushed, and tried to block out the mental image. Her mother looked a little red as well, but happy. Judy smiled at her, suddenly feeling very accepted. She was fortunate. She was fortunate to have such a loving family.

"I still don't get it" her father mused. "Why would a pigeon buy a bakery?"

"Oh, the pigeon is a metaphor for that older ex-con fox boyfriend Judy has been shacking up with" Bucky supplied helpfully through the wall.

"Yeah" Pronk agreed. "And the bread is a metaphor for Judy having sex with him so he won't run off with that other bunny he brought over earlier."

Judy closed her eyes so that she wouldn't actually have to _see_ her father having a heart attack, then hummed gently to herself as she mentally workshopped likely suspects to frame for the Oryx-Antlerson murder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout-out to my readers: you guys rock! I've had 14 comments so far on the last chapter, and that's lifeblood for an author :) positive and negative, I greatly appriciate that you took the time to leave your opinion.


	6. Chapter 6

This was _not_ a make-up smoothie.

Judy was pretty clear on that as she gingerly balanced the fox-sized container of blueberry smoothie in one paw. The oversized beverage for the undersized cop garnered her some curious glances, but people respected the uniform.

They were _not_ making up. He'd been hiding some pretty hefty things from her, and she was still mad at him. Plenty mad. And, possible, maybe, she had gone a little far yesterday. But they were grown mammals. They could talk it all out. They _should_ talk it all out. This was a peace offering smoothie. It'd signalise that she was ready to talk, and that idiot fox would realise the best thing he could do was open up and be perfectly frank with her. And then, if there was time, they might address the issue that she had...

... Brutally used a traumatic childhood memory against him that he had confided her the last time he had opened up to her....

Okay, so maybe it was _also_ an apology smoothie, but she was still mad at him!

Well, there was no use postponing it, she reasoned, as she exited the subway and hopped down the street to his apartment. This was some pretty heavy stuff, and the sooner it was out in the open, the better. And hey! If all else failed, she could play the jealousy card! Males liked that, right? Females being all possessive and wrapped up about them?

Of course, it had been silly, she thought to herself with a smile, ignoring her key and knocking on his door. So Jennifer had been happy to see him. What of it? She knew he was a good guy. He'd probably helped her, and now she felt safe with him, but that was all. There was no way the two of them were-

The door opened a crack, carefully, and was then flung open to reveal a grinning Jennifer, wearing what Judy recognised as Nick's worn ZDP shirt.

"Judy! Oh, it's so good to see you! What are you doing here?"

The older doe wrapped the stunned bunny in a hug, smoothie held in one stiff paw. She had to blink several times before replying, and Jennifer pulled back in puzzled concern.

"What am I doing- _why are you here?_ "

"Oh, I told Chief Bogo that I felt safe with Nicholas, and the MBI thought it was best if I stayed with him until a new safe house could be set up."

"That was..." so far from absolutely every regulation in the book that the idea was practically in far off Marsupalia, helping the wild kangaroo tribes raid wombat settlements, "...nice of them?"

Shaking her head, she addressed the less pressing issue.

"What are you _wearing_?"

Jennifer blushed, why did she blush?

"Well, I didn't actually bring any sleepwear, and Nicholas is so big, and, well, I know it's weird, but there's something comforting about the smell..."

Judy steadied herself against the doorway. How much smell on that shirt was from Nick? How much was from her? She squeezed her eyes shut, and freezing cold enveloped her hand with a crackling sound.

"Um, Judy, I think you broke..."

Judy opened her eyes and looked at the wreckage of a smoothie cup in her left paw.

"Oh, I'm sorry" she said, apparently to the doorway. "I thought it was a fox's windpipe."

Jennifer didn't seem to have a reply to that. Instead, she gestured for Judy to enter, and the bunny cop strode confidently through the doorway, making a beeline for the towels. Fresh towels. Those expensive white ones she'd given him for Christmas.

"So, I made some breakfast?" Jennifer said, uncertain. "It's buckwheat pancakes, with syrup. I, eh, I could heat up some of-"

"Where is he?"

Jennifer jumped at her tone, but Judy looked around the little apartment. There was a bedroom. There was a guest room. Where had they slept?

"Nicholas left earlier" Jennifer said, and winched as Judy spun around to face her. The cop forced herself to calm down, and looked at her wearily.

"He just left you unprotected?"

"He said he needed to find someone called... Finnick? Is that even a real name?"

Judy looked at her, then nodded, sitting down on one of the chairs by the kitchen table. Taking this as a cue, Jennifer returned to the counter, busying herself with a stack of pancakes.

She looked happy.

Judy inspected her as she worked. The doe had always looked happy when Judy came around, but now, Judy had to wonder if that happiness had preceded her arrival. Was she happy because she finally thought she was safe, with Nick? Or was she happy simply because she was with Nick?

Judy had a sudden, vibrant vision of herself five years down the line. Fur starting to fade, wrinkles emerging by her eyes, humming pathetically to herself because she was finally back with Nick, not even noticing the fresh, young doe behind her, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

She pressed a paw against her forehead to exorcise the thought, but it didn't help. To distract herself, she started to speak.

"Nick told me he was in the Syndicate" she said aloud. There was a crash as Jennifer dropped the sugar bowl. "And that he met you there."

Jennifer didn't turn around. Her shoulders were stiff.

"We met in middle school."

"Jennifer-"

" _We met in middle school!_ "

Judy looked at those shaking shoulders and shifted uncomfortably. She was about to start a line of questioning she didn't like.

"Jennifer, did Nick ever... Hurt you?"

The doe's ears twitched in surprise.

"What?"

Judy twirled the hem of her shirt between thumb and forefinger.

"A few months back, Nick and I worked a case. There was this... Sheep, and her flock had been attacked when she was a child. As a result of it, she had a desire to be... Subservient... To predators. They called it-"

"Buckholm Syndrome" Jennifer replied, still not turning around. "Quite a few of the gals had it. Some faked it. You stayed around longer."

There was silence for a little while. Then Jennifer turned around with a smile.

"It was nothing like that" she reassured her. "Nicholas was a good guy. He looked out for us, all of us, as best he could. He never hurt me, or anybody else."

Judy breathed a silent sigh of relief. Jennifer had decided to trust her. Good.

"So, he was a saint in red fur?" Judy joked as the other rabbit approached with a pile of pancakes. They looked delicious. The doe chuckled.

"Goodness no, he was still one of the Syndicate. He'd make it very clear we shouldn't have dreams of escaping. First time he met me, he kept calling me a dumb bunny.... You alright, Judy? You look a little pale."

"I'm fine" she managed to get out. Jennifer smiled, and returned to the counter. Judy grasped the fork, slicing off a piece of pancake. Truth to be told, she had started to grow tired of blueberries in her breakfast. Buckwheat was a nice change. She kept up the questions: Jennifer seemed unusually talkative.

"I thought you said he was nice?"

"He was!"

The doe turned to her with a smile.

"He never ate any of us" she explained simply. "None of the foxes did, it was mostly the wolves and the jackals. The rest were shipped out in cooling vans for the customers."

Once more, the older bunny returned her attention to the counter. She didn't see the expression on Judy's face. She didn't see the fork hovering in the air, forgotten. She didn't see the slice of pancake that gently slid off the cutlery, splashing harmlessly into a small lake of syrup. She looked up, however, as the fork followed, clattering against the plate. She frowned in concern.

"Judy, are you alright?"

Judy blinked at her, opening and shutting her mouth. Had the doe said what she thought she'd said? Had the Syndicate-? Had Nick-?

"I have to go" she managed to get out. She rushed to the door.

"Go? But, Judy- where are you going?"

Judy paused in the doorway. Her heart was hammering, and her head was spinning. She was running out of options. If she wanted to get any more information on the Syndicate, there was only one source left.

"I'm off to see a shrew about a fox."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure what you thought the fate of a trafficking victim in Zootopia was intended to be, but I leave it to your judgement whether this is better or worse. As always, I greatly appriciate the feedback :)


	7. Chapter Seven

"It is true, my child. The Canine Syndicate practised Prey Trafficking."

The brown liquid of the tea sloshed into a delicate china cup, rabbit sized. Judy smiled gratefully up at the stoic polar bear, but it didn't give any indication that it had noticed. Mister Big, as always seated in his leather chair, looked despondent.

You didn't just walk into the house of the biggest crime lord in the city. Judy had called ahead, she had changed into casual clothes, and she had spent time with Fru-Fru and baby Judy. That last part had not been a challenge: she loved her goddaughter, and adored every minute she could spend with her. Latent maternal instinct? Perhaps. Or perhaps baby shrews were simply adorable.

But today's visit had been precipitated by something darker; she knew it, the guards knew it, and mister Big knew it. When her visit with mother and child was over with, the ageing shrew had invited her for tea in his study.

"So Nick really was a soldier for the Syndicate?" Judy said, her stomach churning. He'd admitted to as much, but to hear it confirmed...

"No, child."

"But earlier you said-"

"He wasn't a soldier, he was an officer" the shrew said, simply. "He was generally considered to be the Syndicate's second in command, and one of the few people in the city who knew what Phineas Fur looked like. The only one now, I suppose."

He smiled humourlessly at her expression.

"You never found it strange that a simple pawpsicle hustler ate cannoli with a crime lord?"

She looked down, embarrassed. Truth to be told, she had had other things on her mind that night, and had later been too distracted. There was a question she was dying to ask, but...

"Where all the officers foxes?" She asked instead.

"No, there was also a badger. Honey, I believe Nicky called her. Never met her."

Judy stirred her tea. For a long time, she didn't say anything.

"Not muscle then" she said at last. "Leadership. He could have stopped it, helped those poor prey."

"Nicky never liked it" the shrew said, kindly.

"Perhaps. But he still did it."

Mister Big didn't respond at first. Then he tilted his head to look at the picture of an old, female shrew on the wall.

"Did I ever tell you how Grandmama died?"

Judy blinked, caught off guard by the none sequitur.

"No, how?"

"Surfing accident" the shrew said simply. Judy stared.

"What, seriously?"

"Oh yes." Mister Big seemed bemused. "She picked it up after Fru-Fru was born. She was as old as me! And she went and learnt something like that. After a full day at the beach, she'd go dancing. Dancing! At her age!"

Judy shook her head, amused.

"She sounds like a character."

"She was" the shrew said, looking fondly at the portrait. "Did I ever tell you how Grandpapa died?"

"No, how?" She asked, reaching for a biscuit.

"Mousetrap."

Judy's paw froze. A silence descended over the room. The bears didn't even flinch. She looked at him mutely. Mister Big was still staring wistfully at the picture, lost in thought.

"They were still legal at the time. The rational was that if the mice weren't trespassing, they wouldn't get hurt. It was the same for the rat poison. And the glue traps. I understand something similar is presented as a defence for keeping fox repellent legal."

Judy felt her ears grow hot.

"I don't know how she kept the family afloat" the shrew continued. "I did not ask when I was young. When I grew older, I did not _want_ to ask. But when I climbed the ladder in Tundratown crime, she never batted an eye..."

She looked at him.

"Why are you telling me this?"

The rodent shrugged.

"Because it is important that you _understand_. Zootopia was not always what you see today. Mayor Lionheart, for all his blustering, did one good thing: the Mammal Inclusion Initiative. It was not an idealistic thing; after the Syndicate fell, there was a brief window of time for political action. It was decided that if the canines were finally given a place in our society, they could never again rebel against it. The city has accepted it for the most part, except in regards to the foxes. But there was a time when a good mobster was the best thing you were allowed to be..."

Judy looked down, then looked up.

"That still doesn't justify cannibalism."

"I'm curious what you think would justify the fact that I have a trap door just for icing people."

She didn't respond directly. She stirred her tea.

"Phineas Fur is coming back" she said quietly. The shrew nodded morosely.

"So my sources tell me" he said sadly. "The mastermind returns. I confess, it frightens me. So insidious was the Syndicate that half the time you did their bidding without realising it."

Judy groaned.

"It's just so... Frustrating! Phineas Fur seems to be everywhere, and we don't even know what species he is!"

"Technically, my child, we don't even know that it's a 'he'. Everyone just assumes that due to the name."

Judy looked up sharply.

"So it could have been a... Female?" She asked, carefully.

Mr. Big shrugged again.

"Perhaps. Or perhaps Nicky and the others simply made him up. Canines are crafty. They have the highest measured IQ of any mammal besides primates, and we all know what happened to them, don't we?"

The rodent snapped his claws. On cue, one of the polar bears placed an unmarked envelope before her.

"I can tell you little else, child" he said, waving a paw. "If you want the truth, you must go to the old headquarter of the Syndicate, at Tujunga in the Rainforest district. It is still abandoned. You will find the address in the envelope."

She looked at him, then opened her mouth to ask a question. She decided against it, got up with a nod, and headed to the door.

"My child?"

She stopped, and looked back. One of the polar bears had picked up the rodent, who still sat in his little chair. It was impossible to see his eyes under those heavy eyebrows, but his face had an expression of fond gratitude.

"I know the question that has been burning in your mind since you got here" he said kindly. "And I want you to know that I appreciate that you did not ask. But to put your mind at ease: no. I do not deal in prey trafficking. The eating of flesh repels me, as it repels my men. As it repelled Nicky. For your sake and his, I ask that you give your friend the benefit of the same doubt that you gave me."

Judy felt a lump in her throat at the words of the ageing shrew. Not quite sure what she was feeling or what she should say, she simply nodded and turned away. To distract herself, she opened the envelope and saw the address, then startled when she saw the picture.

The Canine Syndicate had used an old tailor's shop as their front. There was nothing unusual about that, but she stared as she saw the name written over the door, partially messed up with graffiti.

_John Wilde's formal wear._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Both Honey Badger and John Wilde are official, if apocryphal. In fact, the picture Judy is looking at (sans fox kit) is real, and can be found here:
> 
> http://zootopia.wikia.com/wiki/File:Suittopia.jpeg


	8. Chapter Eight

"So there's no sign of him?"

"Sorry, Hunny-Bunny" Clawhauser replied over the radio. "He's listed as on duty, but I can't raise him on the radio. Actually, it doesn't look like he checked out a cruiser at all."

Judy sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"Alright, keep trying to call him up. I'll check in in a few hours."

"Sure you can't come in sooner? There's been a report of a bunny-napping at-"

"Sorry Benjamin" she said, without hearing him out. "Put Francine on it, if you can. I have to take care of this."

"No worries, Hunny-Bunny, dispatch out."

Judy took her hand of the button of the radio and leaned her head back against the headrest of the police cruiser.

Nick was not answering his phone. That wasn't actually all that surprising, considering the conversation they had had yesterday. He hadn't called in a day off, which also made sense, because technically Bogo had made him guard Jennifer. Which didn't make any sense, and which he wasn't doing anyway. She knew he was looking for Finnick, but trying to find the fennec fox in Zootopia, even with that absurd van of his, would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. She'd lucked out last time, she knew.

She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, absent-mindedly.

 _Why_ had Jennifer been so happy to see him? If she'd had Buckholm Syndrome, she'd have had five years of MBI sponsored therapy to deal with it. She wasn't insane, but why would she be happy to see her captor, no matter how nicely he had treated her? Why had Phineas Fur waited all this time to return? And why, for the love of lettuce, had the syndicate been based in a property clearly belonging to the Wilde family?

She rubbed her eyes, wearily.

Bogo had been incensed when he had talked about the Syndicate, but now that she thought about it he had actually been upset when he talked about it coming _back_. Nick had reacted the same way: when he heard that Phineas Fur was returning, a feeling of betrayal had been clear on his face. The Syndicate headquarter seemed to have been a poorly kept secret. Bogo would have recognised Nick's surname the moment he had read the fox's application, perhaps even Nick himself. Yet he hadn't just hired Nick, he'd put the last remaining witness against the Syndicate in the hands of the one cop he knew was connected to them.

To whom she had gone willingly.

What the _heck_ was going on?

Whatever it was, it was beyond her. The sensible thing to do was to contact the MBI liaison officer. Inform her about what Judy had found out about Nick, and the actions of Chief Bogo. She couldn't trust anybody at the ZDP, she realised. Not after Orkney, Nick and... Possibly the chief. Only the MBI remained.

She looked over at her phone.

She was a police officer. That was all she'd ever wanted to be. To be someone who made the world a better place. Nick was a criminal, she was a police officer. She couldn't play favourites just because she lo- he was her friend. All she had to do was pick up that phone, and after five years he'd finally have his comeuppance.

She looked at the phone mutely for a little while. Then she put it away, and started the car for the drive to the Rainforest district.

\---

Mister Big had nice cars.

The thought occurred to Nick as he was squeezed into the backseat of a Wolfswagon car with a timberwolf on either side. Sure, the shrew employed polar bears, but they were still spacious for all that. Jeremy Vole on the CD-player. Fancy cups. Very nice.

"So, I don't suppose you can tell me where we're going?"

The wolves only looked straight ahead. One of them was a sleek, white wolf. The other was a grey wolf with golden eyes, playing with a kukri knife. Neither of them looked at him, and neither of them said anything.

"I don't suppose you can talk?" He said sourly, to stony silence. It wasn't very clever, antagonising one's kidnappers, but he was having a bad day.

He hadn't managed to find Finnick. He hadn't managed to find someone to guard Jennifer while he was away, though at this point, only Judy could have been trusted and calling her to his apartment had seemed like a bad idea. He'd barely left his home district before the wolves had snagged him.

Timberwolves.

Sheesh. Even at the Syndicate he'd thought them a bunch of dum-dums. Take the hood, for instance: before they reached their destination, they pulled a hood over his face. As if he hadn't noticed that they were in the Rainforest district. As if he wouldn't recognise his father's old tailor shop. It still smelled of smoke, five years later. He suppressed a whine.

He'd gotten a kick out of it, back when Phineas had set up the Syndicate here. He could still remember those stuck-up leopards and antelopes visiting, ordering his father about in his own shop like he was a servant. Knowing full well a complaint from them could shut it all down. He remembered his mother's screams when the MBI broke down the door that night. He remembered crying as they interrogated her in the hallway, his father growing cold in the kitchen, gun still in his paw.

So yeah, he had gotten a kick out of it, setting up the Syndicate here. Rubbing it in their muzzles, the ZDP, the MBI, the lions and the lambs, having his father's name emblazoned on the front and knowing there was _nothing_ they could do about it.

It had broken his heart, starting that fire.

It was still pretty dilapidated. The walls were singed and there was garbage everywhere. The local hoodlums had used it as a drinking spot, presumably. Nobody loitered here now, thought. The wolves- and a few arctic foxes- stood stiffly to attention as he walked past. Refugees from the wars in the north. Judy had told him about them. The wolves took him to his father's study, still mostly intact. They'd removed the hood when he entered the front door, so he saw who sat behind the desk, leaning back in the chair.

"Hello Nicholas."

Nick didn't bother sitting down.

"Councilman Odinson" he said, cocking his head. "What an... honour."

The wolf in the chair smiled at him, seemingly at perfect ease. The two wolves who had brought him took up position at the door.

"Oh, there's no need for such formality, Nicholas" he said jovially. Then he added, with a slightly wider grin:

"Please, call me Phineas."


	9. Chapter Nine

Nick laughed.

He wasn't amused, but he'd long ago perfect a number of laughs for all occasions. A good hustle required good acting, and the laugh had to be _just_ right. This occasion, for instance, called for a laugh that appeared uncontrollable, but had that slight edge to it that revealed it as a fake. He bent over double in a well-executed attempted at holding a stitch in his side, and Odinson looked uncomfortable. The white wolf kicked him in the stomach, but after catching his breath he simply continued laughing. The wolf with the knife looked at him silently.

"Alright, alright, that's enough" Odinson said tersely. "I said, that's enough! Tristan, help him up."

"You- you are not Phineas Fur" Nicholas got out, wiping imaginary tears from his eyes as the wolf with the knife pulled him into the chair. Odinson flattened his ears against his head in annoyance.

"Alright, so I'm not" he conceded. He swivelled a little in the chair. "But then again, nobody _knows_ that! Nobody knows who Phineas Fur is, so there is no reason he shouldn't be resurrected."

"Which is what you have been doing, it appears" Nick replied.

It all made a lot more sense now. He'd been angry when Carrot had told him Phineas was returning. _Real_ angry. But if someone was trying to pose as Phineas, someone with a lot of muscle and cash, that rumour might very well spread. He shook his head.

"It's been done, Odinsone. In the five years since the syndicate fell, two foxes and an ocelot tried to pose as Phineas Fur. They crumbled in a week."

"Ah!" Odinson said, raising a finger knowingly. "But they didn't have Nicholas Wilde working for them! The police may flutter about, but everyone in the underworld knows Nicholas Wilde knows his identity, and how loyal he is to him."

Nicholas smirked. He was growing amused for real now.

"And everyone knows Nicholas Wilde _isn't talking!_ The Koala Nostra tortured me for three days before mister Big could save me. What makes you think I'll talk to you?"

"Because we're predators" Odinson said simply.

Nicholas didn't reply, and Odinson got to his feet. Clasping his paws behind his back, he looked out the window at the passing skytrams. This side of the house stood on the edge of the cliff.

"You've seen for yourself what this city has become" he said, over his shoulder. "A cartoonish collection of bright houses and sunshine, predator and prey living in harmony and singing kumbaya. They've become decadent and spoiled, every mixed-mammal photograph a poster picture for political correctness. It has become so weak that a rat and some koalas can put the fear of god into the population. Koalas" he added bitterly. "They're not even mammals, they're marsupials! Bloody eucalyptus-chewing drug addicts..."

Nick raised an eyebrow.

"Then what is your suggestion?" He asked sarcastically. "Speciesism and Predator Pride?"

Odinson look genuinely surprised.

"Speciesism? _Me_? They are the speciests! You know this, because you experienced it! For Fox's sake, man, your father died of it in this very house!"

Nick looked away. The wolf continued.

"The immigration and unchecked reproduction of prey, that's speciesism! That predators become minorities in traditional predator nations, that's speciesism! Surely you understand that?"

Nick kept looking away. He stared at the floor for a very long time. When he looked up, he was perfectly calm, as he had been with the Koala Nostra.

"Here's what I understand: the Marriage Equality Act came through."

Odinson scowled, but Nick continued.

"Mayor Fenris cut a deal with the Herds and Grazing lobby, the bill passed, and you're a protest vote again. Nobody wants speciesism anymore. You think the Syndicate was a power thing? _We were on our fucking knees_! We did what we had to do while you studied predator kingdoms in some fancy boarding school. Nobody wants the Syndicate back, so go ahead and try, because Mister Big is going to ice you _so hard-!_ "

Odinson barred his teeth in a snarl, and Nick fully expected that to be the end of it. Instead, the wolf calmed down.

"I saw you" he said softly, "at the Xanadu resort. With the 'hero cop' who labeled predators savages. You looked like you were enjoying yourself. Now, I don't mind a grown predator playing with his food, as it were, but as I thought about it later, I remembered a story I heard about the Syndicate..."

Nick remained quiet.

"It's probably just an urban legend" the wolf continued, conversationally, "but they say that the reason the Syndicate fell was because one of the foxes became disgusted with the treatment of the prey. That there was a little bunny who had his heart wrapped around her paw. That he set the place on fire and carried her out of the flames..."

Nick didn't say anything at first. Muscles moved in his muzzle as the memories of that night flooded over him. He didn't reply until he sure all emotions had been purged from his voice.

"Sounds like an idiot fox" he said, noncommittally.

Odinson shrugged, and picked up his coat. It was made from red fur, Nick noticed. Imitation fox fur. Taking up Phineas' mantle indeed...

Wrong colour though. Telling him would almost be worth it, just to see the look on his face.

"An idiot fox... Quite right. Tristan, take our guest to the holding cells. Then send word when you've brought the rabbit."

\---

Judy's search had become a stakeout.

Upon approaching the building, she realised it was occupied. Highly occupied, it appeared. The place was teeming with wolves and other arctic predators. Bereft of reliable backup, she had simply settled in to wait. There had been a moment of surprise as she saw Councilman Odinson exiting the building, clad in a red coat. But after that, nothing.

Precisely what she was waiting for she didn't know. Perhaps a suspect. Perhaps some clarity. Perhaps she just needed time to think and sort things out.

Evening found her leaning morosely against the steeringwheel, staring without interest as a car pulled up before the building. She sat up a little sharper when she saw Oswald Orkney, the corrupt otter cop, leave the car. She gasped as he moved to the trunk and fetched a struggling Jennifer from it.

She cursed Nick under her breath for being lax with security.

But at least she now had something to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chatty chapter, but nothing spells exposition like a loquacious villain. 
> 
> Anyhow: our little journey approaches an end. The next chapter will have information on Phineas Fur, and we'll see if your suspicions are confirmed.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Confusing dream sequence at the begining, good (bad?) news at the end.

"Come on, Mommy!"

Nick jumped up and down in his seat excitedly. She was driving him to the Ranger Scout meeting in the police cruiser. He puffed out his chest in his brand new uniform, and didn't notice she was trying to keep back her tears. He had other things on his mind; he was going to join the Ranger Scouts. He didn't care if the other canine kids scowled at him. He didn't care if the coyote down the street called him an Uncle Tod. He was going to be part of a _pack_.

He was going to show _everyone_ predators weren't bad.

His mother drove up to the meeting place, and that was odd, because it looked like the Cliffside Asylum. But it was the right place: the glowing sign said 'Ranger Scouts Pack 914', and then in slightly smaller letters: 'fox hunt tonight'.

He hugged his mother and bound up the stairs, running towards his new friends. He passed a door painted white, and he hesitated. But no. Mustn't open the white door, mustn't ever... He opened the door to the basement instead.

And suddenly he was in the holding cells of the Syndicate, the clamouring of prey all around him. He blinked in surprise. Hadn't he been a kit just a moment ago? He was a grown fox now.

But no, of course he was a grown fox. The Ranger Scout incident was years ago. Misguided youth.

He looked at the struggling of the prey around him and tried to stop the churning in his gut. They'd asked for this, they'd wanted this! If they wanted hate they could have it! They could... They could...

His eyes flickered as he saw a patch of grey, and his heart beat faster. He rushed over to the rabbit doe in the cage. No. No, not her! Not her, not ever, she-

Judy spun around as he approached and sprayed him in the face with her father's fox repellent. He screamed and fell back, and the zebra and the beaver held him down.

"If you though I'd _ever_ trust a fox without a muzzle..." she sneered, fastening the hated device.

He wanted to plead. He wanted to beg. She wasn't like that, she wasn't! She'd come back, she'd apologised under the bridge...

He wanted to point that out, but she was busy. She was explaining to the reporters that it was in his DNA. The koalas were kicking him. Hurting him. The knives and the water. They were trying to make him open the white door, but he wouldn't. He'd never open it! It was all he had left now...

Then the koalas were gone, and the reporters were gone, and the muzzle was gone. He was in the living room of his old home. His father and Chief Bogo were playing checkers, killing time before the MBI raid. The chief glanced up at him and jerked his head towards the white door.

"Go on in, Wilde" he said quietly. "You're expected."

Nick looked from the buffalo to the door, then steeled himself and opened it.

Beyond the door was his father's study. The skytrams moved beyond the window, carrying a fox and a bunny in earnest conversation. He didn't even glance at it. His eyes were fixed on the chair. The large, shaded chair facing the fireplace. The glass of brandy beside it. The shadow of a mammal inside it.

"Phineas..." he whispered.

The fire crackled in the fireplace, making the shadows dance. Nick felt tears running down his cheek.

"Phineas... Phineas, I'm sorry!"

The mammal rose, and Nick took a step back, terrified. Phineas Fur loomed over him, impossibly large.

"I'm sorry I left you!" he wailed, shaking.

But the mammal knelt down, putting his arms around the fox.

_I forgive you._

Nick sobbed. He was glad his mother had gone after dropping him of, because the flames weren't in the fireplace anymore. Bogo and his father lay slumped over the check board, dead, the flames crackling about them. Nick clung to Phineas like a child.

"I'm sorry" he sobbed again. "I'm sorry... but I'd do it again. Oh god, I'd do it all again! Because... Because even after everything she said... I still love her!"

Phineas hugged him close.

 _I forgive yo_ u, said the voice.

_Will you finally forgive... me?_

\---

Nick woke with a start, jerking his muzzle from a pool of saliva that had gathered on the cold concrete floor. One of his guards glanced at him, but didn't make a move to react. Nick closed his eyes, wishing he could wake up from this too, but the plastic strips cutting into his wrists made it clear that this was no dream. He was in the basement beneath the house. One of the holding cells of the Syndicate.

And there were people in the world who didn't believe in karma...

He hadn't dreamt about Phineas in years, and the last time he'd done so he'd imagined strangling the mammal. It had been strangely therapeutic. He'd sometimes dream of the holding cells. On good nights, he remembered them in his father's time, when the storage area for dried goods had been a private playground for a lonely fox kit. On bad nights he remembered them in his Syndicate days, and afterwards he'd cling to Judy and pray she didn't wake up to ask why he was shaking. Because he'd let it all spill out and that would be that...

He shifted uncomfortably and stared into the distance.

Had it all been worth it? A few less dead hyena cubs and a few more dead foals? Less frightened foxes and more frightened capybaras? He could tell himself that he hadn't done anything the jackal packs hadn't already been doing. He could tell himself nothing would have changed if they hadn't pushed the city to the extreme. He had still allowed it. He couldn't have stopped it, but he had allowed it.

_Will you finally forgive... Me?_

He shook his head. Whatever he had done in the past he could help no one by wallowing in self-recrimination. Escape was his first priority, but that could prove difficult. His hands were tied behind his back with plastic strips, his legs likewise. In addition there were three wolves in the room with him, all looking silently into the air. One of them was playing with that wretched knife of his, and Nick singled him out.

"Oy, dum-dum!" He shouted. "Am I supposed to lose my paws here? These bonds are too tight!"

The wolf with the knife blinked, realising Nick was looking at him.

"I is not 'dum-dum'" he explained, in a broken accent. "I Tristan."

"Well, you're a dum-dum if you keep your prisoners tied up like this. Take it from me."

The wolf seemed to think about it for a while, then sighed.

"Ah. It is Zootopian joke, yesno? I am from village, therefore I dumb, therefore I dum-dum, yes?"

"Your words, buddy."

The wolf actually looked depressed.

"Is always so with city mammals, thinking us dumb. Odinson is same. But village also have things to know. Like Tristan's name!"

The wolf brightened up, and looked at him with a smile.

"Ever hear tale of Tristan and Isolde? Is good book. The version we sing in the howl is even better. Ever heard?"

Nick didn't respond. The wolf sighed again.

"No, has not heard. Little fox is city mammal. Let us see, what does Tristan know of city tales... Oh yes, the badger! Badger called Honey."

Nick looked up, suddenly interested. Honey had been one of the higher officers, one of the few beside himself that had seen Phineas. He realised all three of the wolves were looking at him.

"Badger come to our village three years ago" Tristan continued. "Was very sick with fever. In her dreams she spoke of something called a Syndicate. We did not know what this was, but sounded _very_ bad. She spoke of mammal called Phineas Fur. She spoke of mammal called Nicholas Wilde."

Nick met his gaze, but didn't respond. Three years ago. Not five.

"The fever was bad, but was not all" the wolf mused. "Poor badger had witnessed so much in this city of yours and was not allowed to speak. Spoke now, oh yes. Raved, is word. Spoke of the burning house in forest of rain. Spoke of the pleading of the livestock. Spoke of the fox that betrayed itself. Spoke of the fox and the bunny and the dancing elephant..."

Nick froze as the last few words sank in.

The voice continued, but seemed far away:

"... She not happy when speaking of Nicholas Wilde. In fact, badger _screaming_..."

They _knew_.

They knew who Phineas Fur was.

It seemed impossible, but it was true: They knew the secret that had kept him alive for all these years, and by the looks of it, would not keep him alive much longer. Absurdly, he tried to crawl away, wriggling like a caterpillar on the cold concrete floor. To no avail; two of the wolves took up position by his side, pushing him down. He squirmed, but could gain no leverage. The wolf with the kukri knife let it dance before his eyes for a moment before moving it up Nick's back.

Panic seized him then, making him trash about pitifully. He was going to die. He was going to die, and Judy was going to die, and Jennifer was going to die, and Finnick was going to-

The knife effortlessly cut the plastic strips tied around his wrists and ankles. The pressure from the two wolves by his side relented as they let him go, flanking Tristan. Nick looked up at him in confused hope.

"Run, little Kurwenal" the wolf said simply.

Nick didn't know what that was supposed to mean. He didn't _care_ what that was supposed to mean. All he knew was that he was free. He was free, he could find Judy, he could make her leave town- by force if necessary- and he was free. He had a chance. It would be all right.

Most mammals could run on all fours. They never did because it was, well, undignified. But right now, dignity was the last thing he cared about. He wheeled around as quickly as he could and raced up the stairs like a lightning in a green shirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What, you didn't think I picked the series' name out of a hat, did you?
> 
> For various reasons, I'm publishing the rest of the fic today. I would have preferred to string it out and make you mull over the plot twists, but things have simply become too hectic. 
> 
> Anyway, for those of you who aren't opera buffs, I include a link. In hindsight I should perhaps have used a more accessible reference, but I rather enjoy having the world's only Wagner/Zootopia crossover.
> 
> https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tristan_und_Isolde


	11. Chapter Eleven

Jennifer was having a bad dream.

She knew she was having a bad dream, because she was in one of the holding cells of the Syndicate, and she was always here in her dreams. Any moment now she'd wake up. She'd wake up and make herself a salad and watch the morning news. If she closed her eyes, she could pretend she was in bed and that when she opened her eyes she'd be back in her apartment...

Alone.

Her shoulders slumped, and she opened her tear filled eyes to the surrounding darkness. The cells were just like she remembered, except smelling of smoke.

Perhaps it was for the best. No more fear or nightmares. Perhaps it should all have ended back then. At least _he_ had been with her.

Her fox.

Her beloved fox.

There was shouting outside; the otter. The cries had been impatient, then angry, then panicked. She had heard the pitter-patter of his feet move away. That had been some time ago now.

Rabbits had very good hearing. This was why, when the pattering of little paws came again, she could hear it readily. They seemed different, somehow, but she couldn't tell precisely how. When the door opened, she cringed away from the light.

"Please! No, please-!"

"Jennifer!"

She opened her eyes, glancing at the doorway. They burnt against the sudden brightness, but the person before her was no otter. Her eyes widened.

"Ju-!"

Judy slapped a paw over her mouth, casting a panicked glance at the doorway.

"Be quiet" she hissed. "I haven't seen any guards, but we can't take any chances. This place was crawling with wolves a little while ago."

She mentally slapped herself as Jennifer's eyes widened. The last thing she needed was for the older doe to freak out. But the doe surprised her: once the door was open, the helpless doe fell away, and Judy could only assume it was the same hidden strength that had carried Jennifer through her incarceration all those years ago. She nodded, and the two rabbits scurried out.

There really were no wolves. There had clearly been plenty of them: the winding tunnels underneath the tailor's shop showed signs of habitation, but now they were abandoned. There had been no rush. It looked like the arctic animals had simply packed their things and quietly left.

They climbed the stairs to the ground floor, paying no attention to anything around them. The rooms changed when they got to ground level, bare walls giving way to wainscotting and wooden panels. A fox's den. They ran across the carpeted hallway to the front door, almost tasting their freedom. Judy couldn't believe their luck: they were going to make it. They were going to make it, and they would find Nick and everything would be-

The front door swung open before they got to it, revealing a very surprised looking Odinson.

\---

Judy had screamed.

She wasn't afraid to admit it. Her nerves had been very tense over the last 48 hours, and the sudden twist had brought them to a tipping point. The scream had rung across the Rainforest district, disturbing not a soul, save that of a certain red fox clambering down the street, whipping his head around at the unexpected sound.

But Judy did not know this. She only knew that Odinson, and an unknown number of guards, were outside. That meant that if they couldn't go out, they would have to go _up_.

Jumping nimbly out of the way of the snarling wolf, Judy grabbed Jennifer by the hand and rushed up the mahogany stairs behind her. They scampered up the too-large steps, hearing Odinson cursing behind him.

"The rabbit is out! The rabbit- the rabbits! Tristan! Where the hell is Tristan? Orkney?"

"I don't know!" The voice of the otter rang up the stairs. "The new guys, the refugees, they're all-"

Boarded up windows. Of course, this was a condemned building. Technically a burnt out shell. Of course they weren't going to replace broken windows. Pushing Jennifer before her up the stairs, Judy's mind raced, trying to hear the snippets of conversation from below.

"-do you _mean_ , gone? They can't be gone! Find that idiot Tristan and- no, don't fire that h-!"

A gunshot rang out in the confines of the stairwell, and a carved squirrel exploded before them as the bullet missed them by inches. Ice flooded Judy's stomach. Orkney was actually trying to kill them.

The roof.

They had to get to the roof.

They heard pounding feet behind them as they rushed through the unlocked door to the roof. The city lay before them like a cavern of light, streetlights flooding the floor down below, distant buildings rising like stalagmites of stars. Odinson, quite out of breath, burst unto the scene after them with his coat fluttering about him. The two rabbits where already halfway across the roof, where a skytram was closing in. Their muscles driven by pure adrenaline they jumped, making the sky tram rock. Odinson snarled as he rushed after them. His greater size made the jump easy, and the skytram rocked dangerously. Jennifer screamed as the wolf had them cornered, a terror from the primordial night glittering in the artificial light. Judy interposed herself, her face determined. Whatever happened, whatever went down, she was an officer of the ZDP. She would defend Jennifer.

Another gunshot rang out, followed by a muted 'thud' and an alarming creak. The tram lurched dangerously, and to her horror, Judy realised the bullet had struck the part that connected the tram to the wire. Odinson looked up angrily.

"Orkney, I told you not to-!"

The words died on his lips as he saw the fox on the roof, holding a length of wood. The otter collapsed quietly, bludgeoned into oblivion. Nick gaped at them, terrified. The tram was almost away from the roof.

Judy made a decision.

Grabbing the frightened Jennifer she ran passed the surprised Odinson, standing on the very edge of the tram. Using the last of her strength she flung the screaming doe towards the roof, where Nick caught her expertly. She moved to jump, but Odison, mad with fury, grabbed her by the throat, throwing her against the tram. She looked up at Nick.

"Protect her!" She shouted.

The tram fell.

Whether it had been luck, bad luck or skill, Orkney had hit the support. The tram jerked, then, very slowly, distangled itself from the wire to plummet to the ground. In the weak light of the roof, Judy could see the expressions moving across Nick's face, and she was struck with terror as it settled into calm acceptance, and he climbed on to the ledge.

"Nick, NO!" She screamed, as the fox threw himself from the ledge, following his partner into death.


	12. Chapter twelve

It was two hours later.

More police cars than Judy had ever seen crawled across the Rainforest district. Belatedly, as it turned out. There were also ambulances. How very silly.

Someone had offered Judy a cup of tea. She had declined. Someone had also offered her a shock blanket. She had acquiesced. She wasn't quite sure why. But she wasn't thinking straight, so she supposed she needed it.

The antelope medics fussed over the stretcher by the ambulance. They had declared her alright, apparently. She had been lucky and landed in some vines. Bruising and a headache, but nothing worse. Nothing worse than the images. The images playing over and over in her mind, of a fox spread eagled against the stars.

"Stupid fox" she said softly to herself. The antelopes were debating something by the stretcher. The shape was mangled, but clearly canine. There was a lot of red fur.

In her mind she saw Jennifer, all alone in her apartment, the years stretching painfully out towards death. She saw the happy expression she had worn in Nick's apartment, finally reunited with someone from her past. She saw herself, alone.

The antelopes moved the sheet all the way over the head of the dead canine and pushed it into the ambulance. Judy started to cry in earnest.

"Stupid fox" she sobbed. "Stupid, stupid, imbecilic, dung-for-brains idiotic-"

"I have feelings you know" Nick remarked as he flopped down next to her.

She spun around and struck him in the gut. He winced. He, too, had been snagged on some vines, but he probably had more than a few broken ribs. If he didn't have any before, he would now. This wasn't playful hitting: the rapid movements of the tiny fists on his torso was flat-out assault.

"You could have DIED!" She shouted. " _You_ could have died instead of Odinson! What were you thinking, you stupid son of a bi-!"

He grabbed her hands, and she broke down in tears. Before he could say anything, before he could explain, she looked up at him with tear stained eyes.

"Nick... I love you" she said simply.

A strange feeling of warmth settled in his stomach. A weight that had been in him since that afternoon in the interview room disappeared, as if it had never been. He opened his mouth to reply, but she shook her head, knowing what he was going to say.

"But Jennifer loves you too" she said, barely managing to get the words out. That loneliness, that feeling Judy had felt when she thought Nick was gone, was what she had felt every day for five years. She couldn't do that to her. "And it's high time she got her fox."

Nick stared at her for a long time.

Then he sighed.

"Yeah. Yeah, I think you're right...."

\---

"WHO IS IT!?!"

The door of the van flew open, scaring the ox that had knocked. Finnick glared at him wildly, baseball bat held in two paws

"I- I'm sorry.... I own the building you're parked by, see, and I-"

"What, you want me to move? I'll BITE your FACE!"

The ox jumped away, frightened by the tiny fennec fox. Its tail curled in terror and it legged it down the alley. Finnick huffed, tossing the bat into his van. Stupid neighbours. Stupid van. Stupid ass-hat Nicholas making him do hustles on his own. He bet that bloody fox had-

Someone coughed, and the fennec fox spun around with a snarl. A harsh greeting died on his lips as his gaze fell on the mammal.

She was a slight rabbit wearing a cream coloured dress and a wide-brimmed sun hat. She looked at him with tears in her eyes. To an outside observer she looked about thirty years of age. To Finnick, she looked exactly as she had five years ago.

"Jennifer?" He managed to get out.

"Hello Phineas" she said simply, unable to suppress her smile.

Nobody had called him that... In a long time.

Unnoticed by the happy, reunited couple, a police cruiser stood parked on the other side of the road. Nick thoroughly enjoyed the sight of slack-jawed surprise on Judy's face.

" _That's_ Phineas Fur?"

"What, you never found it weird that a fennec fox just called himself Finnick?" He asked, smirking a little. "Though I got to hand it to him. In five years, he hasn't broken character once."

But Judy still had trouble wrapping her mind about the concept.

" _He's_ the one who fell in love with Jennifer? _He_ brought down his own organisation to be with her? _He_ was the one carrying her out of the flames?"

"Yes, yes and yes" Nick chimed in. "That last part is a point of pride with him. He jazzed it up in the mural though. And made her canine, to throw people off."

Her eyes snapped over to the ostentatious painting on the side of his van. It did indeed show a canine carrying a female out of dramatic flames. She had wondered why a hustler would have such an eye-catching van.

Her mind reeled even as the couple in the alley fell into each other's arms. It was a lot to take in, but in hindsight, it all made sense. Everyone said that Nick had been the right-hand man of Phineas Fur. Everyone knew that, but no one made the connection to the tiny, loud mouthed fox that Nick always hung out with. Rather than assume that this creature was the dreaded criminal mastermind, they had simply assumed Phineas Fur had fled town, never to resurface. Even now, when she saw Jennifer's shaking shoulders, saw the little fennec fox show a tenderness he'd never before revealed, she had a difficult time accepting it. Accepting the secret so impossible that no one would believe it if they hadn't seen it: that the hustler dressing up as a baby elephant had once been the crime lord who had ruled Zootopia.

That everything she and Nick had ever done had been mapped out in the footsteps of the dancing elephant.

"I resented him."

She jerked out of her reverie, looking at Nick. He wasn't looking at her, but kept his gaze on the happy couple, making her look at the back of his head.

"I resented him for what we had built. Then, as the years past and the city moved on, I resented him for what we had disbanded. I resented him for making me set fire to my father's shop. I resented him for the fact that I was growing old alone, in a dingy apartment, hustling pawpsicles to survive. I resented him for everything, but mainly I resented him doing all that, and then throwing it all away for some bunny he'd never even see again. We were kings, and then we were clowns..."

She looked at him. There was light in the car, but somehow, he was in the shadows. There had always been a shadow over him, she realised, even in the light.

"You never abandoned him thought" she heard herself say. "You left him, but never abandoned him. Even when all the others did. No matter what he made you do."

He was silent for a little while.

"No" he said at last. "But every day when he'd pull into that god-damn elephant costume, I'd respect him a little less. Every day for four damn years."

"What changed?"

The pause now was even longer. It seemed to stretch out for eternity, and she half expected him not to reply.

Long is the way and difficult the journey out of the darkness and into the light.

Then he laughed, and he leaned back in his seat. And suddenly, there was no darkness, only the soft shine of sunlight on red fur, glittering on a freshly polished badge. Phineas Fur, confirmed publicly by Jennifer Kale to have been Councilman Odinson, was dead. No one knew about Nick's involvement other than Chief Bogo, to whom Jennifer had explained his actions to let her stay with him after her apartment was attacked. Now he was simply a fox with nothing to hide.

"Well, we were doing our usual bit" he mused, remembering, "and people were giving us the usual attitude people give foxes, when suddenly this _stunning_ meter maid walks in-"

Judy dipped her head, blushing furiously.

"-and I forgave him everything right then and there" he continued, pretending not to notice. "I realised exactly the feeling he'd had when he'd given up everything for a bunny, even for just the memory of her..."

"I don't think she noticed" Judy mumbled. She had a difficult time formulating coherent thoughts. Nick chuckled.

"Oh, I made _sure_ she didn't know! I was so terrified by what I was feeling that I did my best to make her hate me, then spent the entire night agonising over it. But this little doe was tough. Phin- Finnick knew though" he added. "That laughing fit he threw when you hustled me? Four years of karma, literally screaming me in the face."

They sat there for a little while, content. Finnick and Jennifer were talking earnestly now, seeming to weep with joy. Nick and Judy was back in their easy silence, feeling warmth spread through their bodies. Eventually, Nick shrugged.

"So, the Chief gave us a few days off. What do you want to do?"

Judy leaned back with a happy sigh, looking up into the ceiling of the car. She thought about the conversation she had had with her mother a few days ago.

"I would like to have... Bread."

He blinked, surprised.

"Bread?"

"Yes" she decided, starting the car. "Let's head over to your place. I am _starving!_ "

"Okay...." He looked at her smiling face as she drove down the street. "I didn't think rabbits were big on bread?"

"You'd be surprised!"

"I'm actually not all that fond of it myself...."

She stopped at a light, and turned to him.

"Nicholas Wilde, you're having bread with me, and you're going to enjoy it. And if you're a very good boy we can explore the pastry counter too. Maybe even have a cinnamon bun! Provided you help clean up the frosting afterwards..."

He looked at her, but decided not to press the issue. Instead he chuckled slightly to himself as the car moved forward, shaking his head.

"Crazy, crazy bunny..."

He looked up at the Zootopian skyline, dominated as it was by Gazelle's palm-tree penthouse. A number of birds were flying next to it.

No, he realised. They didn't just fly. They fell down. They got up.

" _My_ crazy bunny..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ladies and gentlemammals, the melancholy of Phineas Fur.
> 
> This is usually were I say: 'a sequel exists!', but for once, it does not: This fic was always meant to end the series. I like to think I've continuously challenged myself to write something new (fluff, mystery, dystopian), but if I do post more fics its a fair bet they'll be fluffy romantic comedies. My pen name does mean 'sanguine' after all ("excessively cheerful"). Keep up the comments on other fics :) frank criticism and open enthusiasm is what motivates an author to go on.


End file.
